


Not Going Anywhere

by ninwrites



Series: Shadowhunters Coda Scenes [9]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Communication, Episode: s03e01 On Infernal Ground, M/M, Missing Scene, Season/Series 03, Short & Sweet, Spoilers, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, coda fic, continues from episode 3x01, references to alcoholism, very slight
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-05 16:06:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14047896
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninwrites/pseuds/ninwrites
Summary: If Magnus had of truly wished that Alec took up the position in Idris, he would have, because that’s what love is. It’s how Alec loves.All that being so, he is impossibly grateful that Magnus spoke up.





	Not Going Anywhere

**Author's Note:**

  * For [blasphemous](https://archiveofourown.org/users/blasphemous/gifts).



> sh is back .. and apparently, so are these coda fics <3 in reality, it's quite late and this is probably a little rusty but I wanted to write something and this is what that became. 
> 
> \-- 
> 
> quick note: this is a pre-gift for my darling friend yara, as I'm not entirely sure if I will have a complete gift ready for her birthday next week. my dear, although this is in no way related to your proper fic, I do sincerely hope you enjoy it. thank you for being one of my best friends, and generally one of the best people I know <3 i love you quite sincerely and deeply x

 

Magnus wins 80% of their rounds of pool, which is no surprise – Alec takes the chance, when he has it, to smirk at Magnus around the rim of his beer bottle, but he doesn’t mind losing.

 

There’s something exhilarating about competition, about playful teasing, and flirting banter, and getting back into a routine that is as familiar as it is comforting. Alec picks at the label of the beer bottle, watching as Magnus punches in a song on the jukebox, something up-tempo with a beat a little too kicky for Alec’s personal tastes.

 

“I would have missed this,” Alec says to the back of Magnus’ coat. “The Hunter’s Moon, the atmosphere, the pool games-“ Magnus glances over his shoulder, and Alec sighs. “You. Above all else.”

 

Magnus’ steps are slow. Calculated. “I’m sure that even Shadowhunters take holidays from time to time, all work and no play and all of that, but – I would have missed you like a stolen piece of my soul, Alexander.”

 

Alec’s own aches at the admission, but it’s a relief to hear Magnus being honest without prompt; Alec has never been good at dancing around subtlety, preferring to be open with his intentions and his words, but Magnus was hurt, _is_ hurt, and he deserves a little room to breathe.

 

If Magnus had of truly wished that Alec took up the position in Idris, he would have, because that’s what love is. It’s how _Alec_ loves.

 

All that being so, he is impossibly grateful that Magnus spoke up.

 

“You can’t tell me that sneaking weekends will be any comparison to ending the night in the same bed,” Alec shakes his head, the odd strand tripping against his eyelid. “That’s not the kind of life I want to live, Magnus. I was lying to myself, when I made it out that I’d never give up my life, or my career for you.”

 

Magnus lifts his hand, brushing the strands from Alec’s eyes, fingertips trailing down his cheek. Alec brushes a parted-mouth kiss to Magnus’ open palm. “I’d give anything for you, Magnus. You are what makes my life so beautiful, what makes any of this worth it. I got a glimpse at life without you, and it was the worst thing I’ve ever experienced.”

 

“That sounds like an exaggeration,” Magnus’ voice breaks off at the end, eyes shining like fractured moonlight. “I can’t be the only thing in your life.”

 

Alec inclines his head, leaning it into Magnus’ palm against his cheek. “Perhaps not. But you are the most important.”

 

Magnus’ breath hitches, but Alec is already leaning forward to swallow it down, one hand curling in the front of Magnus’ decorated vest. Magnus’ heart beats beneath his palm, when Alec slides his hand behind the garment, and the rhythm is as familiar to Alec as the thud of an arrow into a target.

 

Magnus rests his forehead against Alec’s when they pull apart, thumb catching the corner of Alec’s bottom lip. “You’re a man of immensely wonderful impossibilities, Alexander Lightwood.”

 

Alec shrugs, darting a quick peck. “Best to keep you on your toes, lest you get – bored.”

 

“No such a thing around you, my love.”

 

* * *

 

 

The portal winks shut, the leftover breeze rustling the hair at the back of Alec’s head. He’s gotten used to the whirlwind method of transportation, the slight drop when gravity steps in, now nothing more than a twinge in the centre of his gut, the slight kickback from being literally pushed through time and space.

 

To think, he muses; Magnus – his boyfriend – was the co-inventor. Part of him wishes that more knew, that Magnus was the genius behind the biggest mode of transportation in the Shadow World, but the other part of him is simply grateful that Magnus has trusted him with the information.

 

There’s a rattle of metal and glass; Magnus is over by the drinks cart, conveniently with a martini glass already in hand. “Drink?” He asks, rings glinting beneath the warm lights.

 

Alec waves a broad hand. “I’ll, pass, if that’s alright.”

 

He’s kept his tone neutral, but there seems to be something in his expression, perhaps, that Magnus picks up on. Or maybe he’s just feeling a little introspective in the evening light.

 

“I suppose I could stand to try something else. Coffee?”

 

Alec nods, his shoulders sagging without him quite realising. “I’ll make it.”

 

He’s not sure what he’s expecting, but it’s not for Magnus to follow him towards the kitchen. Still, he keeps his smile mostly to himself, as he bustles around the kitchen, glancing over at where Magnus is perched high on the sleek black stool.

 

“You know,” Magnus’ opening is casual, but Alec has been around long enough to know that hardly anything Magnus says can be considered without a deeper meaning. “I never used to notice that I had a drinking problem. _Have_ , a bit of a drinking problem.”

 

“In all this time,” Alec doesn’t mean to sound imprudent, simply honest. “Huh.”

 

Magnus fiddles with the ring on his thumb, gaze cast downwards. “I come from a time where alcohol was a remedy for everything, Alec. From the flu, to heartache, to boredom – alcohol was a dependant, it was a sign of class and profile and quite a good way to lose track of whatever you didn’t want to remember.”

 

Alec didn’t turn, his back to Magnus as he stirred sugar in. “I’m sorry,” He whispers, because he can’t think of anything else to say.

 

“I’m not an alcoholic, if that’s what you’re sorry about.” There’s a surprising lightness to Magnus’ tone. “I simply tend to lean on it before anything else, which is in itself the problem; there are other methods of coping, I just don’t tend to utilise them.”

 

“Well,” Alec slides Magnus’ mug over, letting his fingers brush against Magnus’. “You always have me, if you want to – talk, instead of drink.”

 

The corner of Magnus’ mouth picks up. “I’m not sure I’ve done anything in my time that is worth what you’ve brought to my life. I’m far from being a saint.”

 

Alec rounds the corner, taking a second to sip his own coffee, letting the moment hang in the air, letting it sit, and breathe, and exist, because he’s in no rush. “Nobody’s perfect,” He points out, letting the steam warm his cheeks. “I’m not a saint, either. But that’s the beautiful part, isn’t it? We’re these two, imperfect souls that have found our way together and now we get to take each day as it comes, helping and supporting each other however we can.”

 

Alec clinks his mug against Magnus’. “Even if that means suggesting coffee instead of a cocktail, from time to time.”

 

Magnus leans forward, pressing a kiss to Alec’s forehead. “I love you,” He whispers, smiling in coy disbelief. “God, I’m so lucky to know you.”

 

“Ditto.”

 

It’s silly and sweet and when Magnus kisses Alec it tastes like bitter coffee and sharp vodka, but Alec wouldn’t change it for anything; not for any position in Idris, not for his family, not even for the Head of the New York Institute title.

 

He doesn’t want for anything else, with Magnus by his side.

 

**Author's Note:**

> links - for those interested:
> 
> twitter: [ninwrites](https://mobile.twitter.com/ninwrites) for fic stuff/updates/snippets + [malteser_24](https://mobile.twitter.com/malteser_24) for general fandom mess + small threads  
> tumblr: I've recently moved accounts - now, I have a writing tumblr, which you can find [here](https://ninwrites.tumblr.com/)
> 
> thank you for reading!
> 
> \- Nin ❤


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